The Calling
by RLMRIP
Summary: A mix of Trinity Blood and originality, plus a few special names from various animes. Young Dante Oketsu is ready to begin his military career; however, what happens during the journey exceeds anything he could ever have imagined.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_Can you hear it? The Calling…it's louder here, stronger here. It feels like I need to take action now. Is now the time, though? I wonder…_

The Nameless looked up, taking in the air blowing past him through his lips, which were loosely sewn shut; he could open his lips roughly an inch. His luminous yellow eyes glowed curiously in the near-darkness; the woods in which he stood were completely dark, except for his eyes. However, this wasn't a problem; The Nameless could see everything without his eyes. He looked suddenly to the east.

_It's coming from Him…could it be? But no…even Crusnik 01 isn't that powerful…unless he's been behind it this entire time…_

The Revenant that had been accompanying The Nameless disappeared in the darkness, rushing eastbound to see what was there. Within seconds, however, The Nameless felt its life snuffed out; of course. The Nameless decided to leave it be for now. He vanished, leaving perfect darkness behind him. Gone, but not quite.

_Don't try to run away, Nameless. I think we both know what would happen if you were to anger me; what if I wish you to stay?_

The Nameless reappeared where he had been, abandoning the nearby tree he had taken shelter in. Dare he cross The King of the Crusnik, the most powerful being in existence, the one who had defied death itself only hours before?

_…what would you have me do?_

_Surrender now. I just slaughtered your entire army; don't think I won't do the same to you._

The Nameless hesitated; the King was perfectly right. However, they both knew that The Nameless could escape. So why act so confident…?

_I'm waiting._

_Tell me one thing, then. The Calling...are you responsible for it? Or does it simply draw me to you?_

Dante Oketsu laughed and shook his head; The Nameless truly did not understand what even his daughter had when she was born. The Nameless scowled in his direction and vanished once more, not to return to these woods again.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Always silent enough to hear a drop of blood fall…this was how the Lords of the Mountain, the Crusnik, described their home. The caves of the Crusnik Mountain, even right outside the mighty Academy, where powerful battles took place, were always silent; the Crusnik, after all, were a very silent people. Even now, as 17 of the young creatures, garbed in military uniforms, approached the gates of the legendary school, there was no noise within the halls. All but one of them huddled in a fearful group; they had heard terrible stories of this place's intense training regiment. However, the Crusnik out front was fearless; he was born to come to this place. 16-year old Dante Oketsu laughed in the face of danger.

Now, the young Crusnik stood before the mighty walls of the Academy, fearing for their lives before they had even seen their first hours of training. Dante examined the scene closely; the gates, a void-like black just as the walls of the caverns were, glowed a soft blue. This glow was a warning to any of the Crusnik who were not welcome in this place; that deceptive glow would kill in an instant. The cavern walls around the gates were a jagged assortment of threatening spines, standing out from the perfectly smooth surface of the giant double doors before them.

For a few minutes, Dante stood in silence, staring at the gates; the cadets were far too scared to enter this place, even to speak. One of the cadets opened his mouth, as if to speak, but Dante held up a hand to silence him; the slightest movement could start it. Seemingly out of nowhere, a face appeared upon the gates of the Academy; the face of the founder of the school scowled down at them, an ancient presence that was ever doubtful of the students coming into the Academy. Its eyes glowed blood red, exactly like the eyes of the young Crusnik staring in fear up at it. It spoke briefly, but with such presence that it felt as though there was a figure on every side of them. The very ground beneath them shook; at this moment, all but the leader of the group were scared for their lives. They would either die, or come out as warriors.

"State your presence, cadets! Platoon Leader, identify yourself!"

Letting his training override his thoughts, Dante stepped forward; he rendered a hand salute to the figure and spoke loudly, his voice rivaling the unruly presence of the figure's own voice.

"Sir, Cadet Echo Class Dante Oketsu reporting in as directed, sir!" Dante replied, his every motion and word implying that he was a graduate of this school, rather than an incoming student who had never even seen the doors until today. The figure in the gate seemed to recognize this, looking highly surprised for a second before recovering its bearing and replying with a smile, "Outstanding job, cadet; you'll do well here. Now, take your platoon inside these gates and give command to the awaiting S-Class Cadet."

The figure vanished as quickly as it had appeared, then the doors swung open. Dante smirked and dropped his salute; he had just received a compliment from his grandfather. He stomped his left foot once, and the cadets behind him instantly formed into a perfect formation. After stomping once more, they all marched inside, perfectly uniform, as the Cadet Candidates of the world's best military academy should be. They had come out as warriors.

As Dante halted, the entire platoon halted, sensing exactly where he was going to stop. After handing command of the platoon over to the S-Class Cadet, Dante took his place in a nearby formation, with the other platoon leaders; though they couldn't see them, or hadn't due to their amazement at the place, there were about 20 other platoons of new cadets. The platoons were put at ease, as were the former platoon leaders, so they could all look around eagerly at the school.

The Academy was a beautiful place, beyond anything the Crusnik living within the Mountain had ever imagined. Every building was made of a magnificent opaque crystal, which glimmered in the sunlight shining down; this was the only place where the sun would shine in the mountain, as well as the only time. Each structure had a specific color; everything from fiery red to blinding white to the draining black of the outside caverns decorated the large space in which the Academy situated itself. The huge training grounds on which they stood were made of dirt rather than the crystal of which the entire mountain's interior was formed; it felt weird under Dante's feet in relation to the hard stone he had walked on for so long.

Dante instantly became suspicious. _Why would they put dirt on a pedestal?_ Traditionally, the dirt was for combat; but the structure of this pedestal implied that it wasn't here all the time. So why put dirt on it, unless…Dante instantly whipped around, looking for any sign of a trap. He wasn't allowed to speak when at ease, so he simply tapped his companions on the shoulder and pointed to his ear, a well-known sign among Crusnik to keep an eye and an ear open for traps.

As soon as the message had gotten around, however, an explosion of flames erupted from under the platform, and the entire situation went out of control; Dante managed to leap away, though all but three of his new comrades hadn't been so lucky. The mass formation, meanwhile, erupted into a panicked group of young cadets. Dante landed on his feet, using one hand to steady himself on the ground, and bringing the other to his lips. He bit his thumb, drawing blood; the blood crystallized into a miniscule orb. He held his hand up and the orb started to grow. In seconds, an enormous beastly scythe, formed of his own blood, appeared in his hand. He gripped it tightly and disappeared in a flash of light. When he reappeared a few feet away, he was no longer the young cadet he had been a few seconds before.

His red eyes had intensified in their glow; they now burned a fierce red, scanning the area around him. He was now dressed in black robes, covered in glowing white designs. He now had silver metal armbands and his hair flowed more freely than usual, even floating in the air slightly. He stood up, showing off his mighty 6'4" figure, and charged towards the spot where the explosion had originated from. Now, there was a figure in a black combat suit glaring at him, red eyes exactly like Dante's glowing fiercely back at him.

Suddenly, everything froze; Dante found himself stuck in midair. A man, dressed in the familiar military uniform of the Crusnik Army, appeared between them; judging from his decorations, this was the last person Dante wanted to see right now. The Commandant of the Academy snapped his fingers and motion resumed. Dante dropped to his feet, then down to one knee, as was custom. Immediately, everybody present dropped to one knee, including Dante's assailant.

The Commandant approached the assailant, and then summoned a staff, made of his own blood like every Crusnik weapon. He lashed out, striking the cadet, who immediately fell over as though hit by a truck.

"I told you not to do this," he said quietly, his voice still seeming to somehow carry through much of the cavern. "Did you not understand what I meant when I called off the attack?" The assailant adjusted himself, bowing his head deeply, and apologized. The Commandant turned now to the rest of the cadets, speaking in a much warmer tone, though still just as loudly.

"Rise, my children. Please, return to you formations, I have words for you all." The cadets quickly returned to their places; the last thing they wanted to do was anger the most powerful person there. After all, the Commandant had absolute control of reality within the grounds of the Academy; he could kill them all at a though. The assailant took his leave, looking sorely disappointed with himself, but not before fixing the pedestal; the platoon leaders returned to it and everybody took their places. It was time for Lieutenant Colonel Brian Howzen, the Commandant of the Academy, to speak to his new recruits.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Hello and welcome to the Academy; please, take your seats. You will need your strength." As the Commandant stepped up to the pedestal and spoke these words, ornate chairs sprouted from the ground, made of the same beautiful crystal as the nearby buildings; however, the colors seemed much more firm here. Every platoon had chairs of a specific color. Perhaps they had chosen their loyalties already. The cadets took their seats, some looking worried; why would they need their strength?

Dante watched the Commandant with a mix of wonder and anxiety; the man standing before him had lived longer than many Terran Empires, yet he looked only as old as Dante himself was. His hair, like Dante's, was bright silver, flowing down to the small of his back. He had a bad tendency to praise Dante, but as long as Lieutenant Colonel Howzen didn't mention his name at the ceremony, all would be well.

"Now, everybody here has already heard at least a dozen speeches on the wonders and pride of this school, so I won't waste your time with such nonsense." More than a few audible sighs of relief were heard throughout the cadets, which were quickly silenced by piercing glares from their peers. The S-Class cadets now began patrolling the ranks, checking for any troublemakers. The Commandant continued speaking, though, as if nothing was amiss.

"Today, you will be classed; all cadets seated here today have already chosen their allegiance to their respective theaters and been accepted into the Academy, but now is the time to test your ability and see how you rank among my students. Each of you will duel an A-Class cadet, permitting you to potentially obtain the rank of Cadet B-Class."

At this, many cadets looked morbid; any A-Class cadet had the equivalent rank of a Lieutenant in the military, meaning that they were certainly a force to be reckoned with. However, other cadets looked surprisingly calm; they knew that no cadet had ever been killed in this school, and thus did not worry. Even if they were badly beaten, the powerful medical staff of The Healers theater would take very good care of them.

"However, we have a very special gift for the platoon leaders, since they have worked so hard to get where they are now. They will be permitted to retain their rank, and in addition, will duel an S-Class cadet." At this, the S-Class cadets vanished, appearing before their respective opponents. Though many jumped, and one fell out of her chair, Dante was unshaken by the young wiry man standing before him. "This will permit them to obtain the rank of Cadet A-Class."

From this statement, a lot of excited muttering erupted on the pedestal, directly behind the Commandant; a chance to become a Lieutenant on the first day of being at the Academy! The S-Class cadets quickly silenced them, however, with harsh looks and a few threatening gestures. However, the muttering wasn't limited to the platoon leaders; many of the cadets within the platoons seemed angry as well. Why didn't THEY have the opportunity to confront the S-Class cadets?

The Commandant took his staff and slammed it into the ground, causing a deafening crack to emanate within the confines of the Academy. The crowd instantly silenced themselves, looking terrified; were they all about to die? Dante himself looked a bit nervous at this point. _There is no chance for any of us if the Commandant decides to punish us; I'd best watch my step_, Dante thought nervously, squirming slightly in his seat. The Commandant, after a menacing glare, returned to his speaking as though nothing had happened.

"Now, back to the agenda for today…" the Commandant said, trying to get everybody focused once more on the task at hand. "All the cadets in formation will report to their theater's dormitories to get settled in. They will be taken to their rooms, issued their agendas, and be allowed to change before having their duels in the theater arenas, which will be monitored by the S-Class cadets not participating in classing.

"As for the platoon leaders…you will all be staying in your personal Joint Service dormitory. However, you will first have your battles out here, to be monitored by myself. After the battles and classing are complete, then you will be taken to the appropriate rooms.

"After all classing is complete, cadets are free to explore the grounds for the day and socialize. Lights out at 2200 hours. Am I clear?" At this, all the cadets on the grounds rose in unison, snapping to attention and replying, "Sir, yes, sir!" The Commandant smirked and snapped his fingers; all the chairs in the room disappeared. "Dismissed!"

Almost instantly, the cadets in the mass formation fell out and ran to their respective dormitories, more out of fear than anything else; they certainly did not want to get caught up in the battles about to ensue, let along risk the Commandant's wrath. Meanwhile, the S-Class cadets took on a much lighter demeanor, leading their charges to their designated battle arenas. Dante was going to battle on the pedestal.

Dante analyzed his arena; it was big, about the size of a ten-yard segment of a football field, but still not big enough for a comfortable battle. Perhaps…Dante smirked, eyeing the wings still on his back; this would be one advantage he had over his opponent. But not the flying, oh no; all S-Class cadets were trained to fly…

Dante took his spot as directed by the cadet in charge of him. His heart was racing now; this would decide everything for him; everybody in his family who had gone into the Academy had come out of their classing as a B-Class cadet; it was time for him to break the cycle. He took his battle stance, as did everybody else on the field. The Commandant disappeared in a flash of light, reappearing in another on top of the main building. He smirked briefly, and then yelled to the cadets below, "Begin!"

Instantly, Dante kicked off the ground, soaring high into the air; his opponent followed suit, though he seemed drastically slower. _Perfect, I'm faster than him_, Dante thought, allowing himself a slight smirk. It was only in battle that he ever felt so cocky, but even then he was never overconfident; this could, after all, be a ruse.

Unfortunately, Dante's opponent had technical skills over him; in a cloud of smoke, the black-clad S-Class cadet disappeared. Dante cursed his luck and analyzed the situation; he had no place to hide, and was clearly outclassed; hiding and directly counterattacking were out of the question. He did the only thing he had left; his eyes flashed white, and a translucent blood-red barrier formed around him. He waited patiently, the milliseconds crawling by like hours, for his attacker.

The attack came directly from behind; typical and expected, but always effective nonetheless. Dante spun his scythe over his head and behind him, deflecting the attack as it broke through his barrier with ease. Dante took the opportunity to make a quick choice; fight or flight? He chose the latter, hurtling ever higher into the air. He spun around to find his opponent far behind him. He decided to test the cadet's strength; he held out his free right hand, still holding his scythe in his left, and an orb of pulsing white energy appeared above his hand. He pointed towards his opponent and the orb went flying at him. Now to see what the S-Class cadet would do…

Dante watched, waiting for the attack to be deflected, dodged, something…but it never happened. Dante was thoroughly taken aback when the attack hit head-on in a flash of light. _That was my most powerful attack! Either he's immensely strong, or immensely weak._ Dante looked again to find his opponent falling to the ground. _Wait, what…?_ Dante looked quizzically at the unconscious body falling ever faster towards the ground. _This can't be right…how did I beat an S-Class cadet with a single attack?_

Apparently, he did, however, as the Commandant was forced to intervene, breaking the cadet's fall with a quick snap of the fingers. Dante just hovered in the air, looking dumbstruck. _It was so easy! How on Earth…_ The Commandant suddenly was flying towards him, though still not quite as fast as Dante had been flying. _Am I really that fast, that I can outdo the Commandant himself?_

"How in the world did you do that?" The Commandant looked partially shaken, exhilarated, and even afraid as he approached Dante. "It's as though your skill has been honed by a force greater than the Academy! Just look at your comrades; they are powerless next to you!"

Dante did as he was told, wishing the scene wasn't supporting the Commandant's claims. Much of the ground had been blasted out by energy blasts, though they were clearly done by new cadets, for they were unfocused and crudely aimed. The ground was littered with unconscious bodies, many thoroughly beaten or cut. With two exceptions, all the new cadets were down for the count.

The first exception was a stunning woman with long, beautiful dark red hair; her combat suit only accentuated her voracious curves, though it seemed more than suitable for combat. Her opponent was also down for the count, though the new cadet seemed to have paid a heavy price for that; she was down on her knees, breathing heavily, and she had countless burns, bruises, and cuts on her.

The second exception was a well-built man in robes much like Dante's own, though his robes had no glow to them; he had fairly short brown hair, a very dark skin tone for living in a mountain his entire life, and toned muscles. Like the eyes of all male Crusnik, orbs of blood watched the S-Class cadet he had been battling, who was still standing; they had about the same amount of damage and were both still standing; a draw was apparent.

Dante shook his head in wonder; he was quit possibly the most powerful cadet here. He turned to the Commandant, who stared back in admiration. "You really are better than I expected." Dante chuckled softly and looked back down; the S-Class cadets were now starting to heal the wounds of their opponents. The mighty Crusnik had no need for petty immature tempers like the Terrans possessed; though many of them were very young, all were ancient in their thoughts.

The Commandant smiled slightly, snapping his fingers; instantly, the wounds of all the cadets there were healed, and the damage to the courtyard had been undone. Dante stared in disbelief; _What amazing power! Clearly, being the Commandant has its perks._ The Commandant now turned to Dante, a playful smirk on his face.

"I think it's almost time to check on the lower-class cadets. After they finish, we have a promotion ceremony to attend to."


End file.
